Only Human
by A Late Gentleman
Summary: Emma Swan was only human, but the citizens of Storybrooke wanted a savior. She wasn't their savior, she was only human.
1. Chapter 1

I felt a tremor in my hand as I clutch on to the glass in my hand and looked at the reflection of my face in the apple cider.

I didn't recognize the woman that was staring back at me.

She wasn't The Savior that everyone had claimed that she was or the woman who made the right decision all those years ago about her son.

She was only human.

_ I'm only human._

I had been trying to take back my son and I wasn't even doing a good job of that!

I gave him up hoping to give him a better life.

How can I be anybody's savior if I couldn't even save my kid?

The small white oval pills were in the other hand and I knew that it was now or never.

"Bottoms up, Emma." I whispered to myself.

At that moment, I realized that I was the way I should always be which was alone.

_Alone._

I didn't give it a second thought before the pills were being swallowed down with the golden liquid.

The timing had to be perfect and I had a gut feeling that I'd screw that up too.

I don't know how much time had passed from the moment I decided to have that first glass to this moment right here.

I knew I'd had more than enough necessary and to make sure of it, I drank at least half it.

I collapsed onto the floor of the apartment I shared with Mary Margaret and my vision was becoming blurry.

The door opened and there were two distinct footsteps that were so easily recognizable.

One pair was from the woman I was supposed to save August and the town from. The other pair was from Henry.

"Emma? Emma!" Regina's voice became frantic as she knelt beside me to examine me closer.

Henry yelled, "Mom, wake up! What's wrong with her?"

_I didn't want Henry to see me like this._

Their voices were beginning to fade out and I did everything I could to focus my eyes on their faces for one last time.

I wanted to tell Henry that everything was going to be _okay_.

I breathed what I believed to be my final breath.

I'm not in any book.

_I'm a real person._

And I'm no savior.

_I'm only human._


	2. Chapter 2

I was lost in a place that only I was able to belong to and I was able to relive my attempt at ending my life.

Oddly enough, it was peaceful and I didn't want to leave this place at all, wherever it was.

I actually _belonged_ and it was okay to be alone.

_Alone._

Henry.

_Oh God, Henry._

What had I done?

I heard a noise that sounded foreign to me at first, but then became a familiar sound.

The beeping noise was one of the most obnoxious things in the world, but I was only happy that it was invented during the time when Henry was in the hospital.

I felt myself slowly wake up and that beeping noise kept getting louder as I was getting my senses back.

The heart monitor kept speeding up faster and faster and I only had one person on my mind.

"Henry." I said groggily, but as clearly as I could manage.

My eyes were moving around the room to find a glimpse of him, but I didn't see him.

I tried to sit up, but I felt a soft touch press on my chest to get me to lie back down.

"Emma, Henry's with your parents. I didn't think it was appropriate to expose him to anymore events that could harm him further."

Regina said softly and even though she had removed her hand, I still felt it there.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

_I was alive when I shouldn't be._

Great, I couldn't even kill myself the right way.

_I hurt Henry._

"I'm sorry." I slurred and did my best as I opened my eyees to focus on Regina.

"You should be, Miss Swan. This was your _fault_." She snapped.

"Not responsible." I responded to the best of my ability even though I could barely think let alone utter a word coherently.

"The moment you came into Henry's life was only the beginning of countless problems that you were going to cause. I knew that he was safer in my care than in yours. After all, why else would you give him up like that?"

_I was a kid myself, how the hell was I going to take care of him?_

I wanted to yell that at Regina, but I just stayed quiet so I could listen.

"I don't know what caused you to want to take your life, but I can assure you that you won't be getting anywhere near Henry again. So when you recover, I expect you to pack your bags and leave Storybrooke. You can easily be replaced even if you are _their_ Savior."

_I'm not anybody's Savior, I'm just me._

She was right because I was easily replaceable.

She did replace me as Henry's mom because she was there for him for everything.

She stood up from her chair, "Before you leave though, I want you to make a public announcement to everyone in Storybrooke that you're leaving."

"No Regina, I won't."

She looked down at me and gripped onto my jaw tightly, but not enough to hurt.

"That wasn't a request."

She released her grip and part of me wanted her to not go away.

"You should've left me."

Before she walked out, she said, "You're right, I should have. I am The Evil Queen after all."


	3. Chapter 3

-EMMA-

Henry was my kid even if I had to give him up. I thought that Regina and I were becoming friends. I didn't want to lose Henry because he gave me a purpose.

-REGINA—

Regina was not so quiet when she left Emma swan since she slammed the door loudly. She knew that f Emma had not been Henry's birth mother or the one who'd broken her curse, then she would not have taken such drastic measures to make sure that Henry was safe from Ms. Swan.

The moment she had held Henry in her arms when he was a baby when she might have truly believed that Henry was her happy ending.

What made that woman delusional enough to think that she could just walk into Henry's life and try to replace her?

She wasn't there when Henry cried from night terrors, had his first birthday, lost his first tooth, or had his first day at kindergarten.

She was known by all as The Evil Queen and she was going to show Emma Swan what evil truly was.

As she continued to walk in the direction of her home, she heard yelling coming from behind her. She saw how those peasants that were known as the citizens of Storybrooke were outraged. They probably blamed her for Emma's poor decision. Their precious Savior was the one who should be blamed, not her.


	4. Chapter 4

_Henry was my kid even if I had to give him up. I thought that Regina and I were becoming friends. I didn't want to lose Henry because he gave me a purpose._

-HENRY-

The front door opened and angry voices flooded into the Mill's home. Henry was now sitting on the steps and saw his mom. He thought about how he really missed Emma and didn't fully understand why she wouldn't contact him. His mom told him tat Emma didn't want him anymore like how she didn't want him when he was a baby despite what Emma had told him when she first met him. Henry was able to see through her lie and he knew that Emma loved him. She was his REAL mom.

A smile had appeared on his face when he thought of a plan. He called his new mission Operation Swan and the goal to talk to Emma in the hospital. After, he would to ask her to help him save his mom from the angry people in his town even if she is The Evil Queen.

-FLASHBACK-

Henry and Regina were on their way to visit Emma at her apartment because Regina had finally agreed to let him stay there for the night. Regina had called Emma multiple times to make sure that she remembered, but it went to voicemail each time. Henry saw his his mom was becoming very impatient, but he was surprised when she didn't turn around and go back home.

This was so like Emma to not be punctual let alone forget that she had plans with Henry. Luckily, Regina was the opposite of her which was why she is the Mayor and why Swan is the Sheriff.

Regina and Henry were now in front of Emma's apartment door. It was too quiet inside which was unusual since music would be blasting loudly and an excuse for singing would be heard from Emma through the door.

She didn't bother knocking, so she used her magic to open the door. Henry ran ahead of her into the apartment and Regina followed him immediately when she heard his frantic voice.

Emma was lying on the ground motionless and Regina had easily concluded what had happened. Henry was calling her name and Regina knew it was up to her on whether Emma survived or not. She bent down to call Emma's name and when she was unresponsive, she immediately called for an ambulance. She told Henry to wait in Emma's room until the whole ordeal was over.

The ambulance had arrived fairly quickly, but she didn't think that it was fast enough for her liking. She yelled at the paramedics to quickly, but carefully get Emma onto a stretcher and inside the ambulance. Although she was getting Emma to the hospital as fast as she could, she swore under her breath that she'd make Emma pay for causing Henry to feel that much pain. This could also be the tip of the iceberg that will lead Regina to destroying the image that Henry had of Emma being a hero.


	5. Chapter 5

I'd lost track of time of how long that I'd actually been in the hospital for let alone this uncomfortable bed. My bed at the apartment was a hell of a lot more comfortable and it didn't have this gross smell that hospitals specialize in. I looked down at the tray of hospital food that I was given and immediately went for the chocolate pudding.

It was the most delicious tasting thing that I had tasted and it was the one thing right now that had made me even slightly happy. I closed my eyes to think about the events that had brought me to the hospital and also Henry's reaction to it.

After I finished my pudding, I put it back on the tray, and pushed it away from me without causing it to hit anything. I wasn't one to express my emotions let alone verbalize them, but this was just too much.

I remembered the look on Henry's face when he found me. It had caused my heart to rip in two due to the scar that Henry would have to carry in his heart knowing that I was willing to leave him behind. What kind of mom was I if I was willing to selfishly abandon my son once again.

I sat up, hugged my knees close to my chest, and rested my chin on top of my knees. I felt tears stinging my eyes and I shut them to silently wish away this feeling. This was an emotion that I had not felt since Neil had left me and it was a memory that I kept buried deep in order not to feel it again.

As much as I despised the idea of leaving Henry behind and allowing Regina to abuse her power by having me make a speech in front of the entire town, she was right. I knew that she also loved Henry just as much as I loved him. Maybe Regina and I should raise Henry together instead of constantly fighting about who Henry will be better off living with.

Regina could be cold hearted and it made it possible to understand why people feared her, but she was also a woman who loved her son with her whole heart. I saw the way she looked at Henry and how she did truly love him when she said it. I knew that she did a wonderful job of raising Henry all on her own and I couldn't possibly believe what I would've done in her position.

I care about Henry just as much as she does and I want him to be happy. Maybe Henry would be a lot happier with Regina in the end. After all, even if he is my son, I barely know him. I hadn't been in his life for ten years and he still welcomed me into his life.

The more I thought about Regina, the more I had admired her as a person. Even if she did hate my guts right now, I felt deep down inside that she had to have a small amount of trust within me to let me spend time with Henry.

She would say when she got the chance how much she loved Henry and how she was all that she was all that he needed in life. I felt the utmost respect for her and it felt like that admiration was becoming something a lot more. Could it be that I was actually gaining feelings for a woman who could easily rip my head off? I wasn't sure if I wanted to know the answer.


	6. Chapter 6

-HENRY-

Henry had started running down the sidewalk towards the hospital and all he could think about was how he was going to sneak into the hospital to see Emma. It didn't take him as long as he thought it would to reach the hospital.

The hospital lights were all on and when Henry stepped forward, the doors had automatically opened and he slowly walked in. There were not many staff members here late at night since it wasn't so busy.

He had his back pressed against the wall and slowly looked around the corner to make sure someone wasn't coming. The coast was finally clear and he went straight to the front desk.

There wasn't someone there, so he quickly found the room that Emma was staying in and opened the door. "Emma, are you awake?" He whispered as he let himself in.

He saw how Emma was already dressed and packing up her things. Her hair was in a messy ponytail and looked like it hadn't been combed in a long time. Her clothes were so wrinkly and it looked like she'd lost that spark that she used to have.

Emma looked up at him and looked startled. "Henry? What are you doing here? It's really late and you should be back at Regina's house."

Henry looked at her, "Emma, my mom needs your help even though she won't admit to it. She's locked in the house and there were people surrounding the house early today."

She leaned against the bed's railing, "Henry, your mom's a strong woman and she can handle herself."

Henry raised his voice a little, "No Emma, you can't just say that. You're the Savior and I brought you here to save everyone."

Emma kept her cool, "Henry, your mom wants me to make a speech in front of everyone today and I don't need any more pressure put on me."

She put on her red leather jacket, walked past Henry, and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Sorry kid, but I'm not the white knight that comes on a horse to save the day."

Henry felt Emma's hand move from his shoulder and she had lead him down the hallway of the hospital.

"I'm dropping you back home, going to Mary Margaret's house, and then heading to town hall right after."

Both of them walked to the Mills' house and Emma knocked loudly on the door. Henry looked up at Emma and then back at the door as it opened.

Regina came out in a dark purple silk robe and wrapped it around her securely. She looked at Emma for a moment, "Henry, it's way past your bed time. Don't you dare sneak out of this house again."

Henry kept his gaze on the floor as he walked past Regina. Emma hadn't said anything during this exchange and Regina pointed a figure at her, "I will see you later."


End file.
